We know what our food eats --- do you?

It is no longer enough to say that you are what you eat, but now rather, you are what your food eats.   

The industrialization of our food supply has led to a dangerous practice when it comes to producing what we in the restaurant business refer to as “center of the plate” protein --- that is, fish and meat that is posed in the center of the plate around which a few pieces of plant based garnish are scattered, paired with potatoes and a swirl or smear of colorful, sugary sauce. 

The popular trend to use local ingredients (mostly produce) is a positive step in the right direction if the goal is to feed our bodies with clean food.  But it is just a drop in the bucket since the normal American diet is high in protein and low in produce.  Take for example the popularity of the 20 oz ribeye topped with deep fried onion rings, a staple on the menu of a nearby successful fine dining establishment. 

If Americans stick to a diet where more protein is consumed than any other food, then locally sourced produce, promoted by restaurants as the basis of a healthy menu, is just not enough.  Is it healthy when a plateful of locally grown kale is nestled under a piece of farmed salmon, skinned, cut and frozen with chemicals to ensure the look of freshness, or a dyed tuna steak or shrimp farmed outside the U.S. in water of unknown sources and without safe food handling practices?  Not only must we be vigilant in sourcing plant food and dairy ingredients without hormones, additives and antibiotics, but now we must turn our attention to the industrialized feeding of chickens, turkey, lamb, beef, pork, fish and game. 

What was once called wild fish and game, is less likely now to be wild.  Fin fish, shellfish, rabbit, and venison are more likely to be farmed in today’s market --- many fed with manufactured pellets.  Soy, corn and chicken by-products are the top three ingredients in pellet food and the predominant ingredients in fish food given to salmon, tilapia, carp, sturgeon,  and catfish.  If they eat soy, corn and chicken by-products, then doesn’t it follow that we are eating soy, corn and chicken by-products?  

That is why at Beyond the Bull, we took the time, almost two years, to source our proteins.  We took the time to find North Atlantic lobster and sea scallops, tuna, hake and baby octopus that is wild caught, bison, antelope and venison that is free range, wild boar that is hunted and field dressed, clams and mussels that are raised in their natural habitat, rabbit that is fed a natural diet and processed here in South Carolina, Bandera quail that is raised on a natural diet without antibiotics and Dorper lamb that is grazed on a Texas plateau. 

We are proud of our menu and our commitment to serving plant based ingredients that are clean and locally sourced.  But even more so, we are proud of our commitment to serve clean and wild sourced "center of the plate" proteins as well.  After all, what they eat, is what we eat! 

Eat smart, feel good! Chef AngelaB

Beyond the Bulll (an "eat smart" kitchen)

8095 Keowee School Rd., Seneca, SC 29672
http://antiaginggastronomy.blogspot.com/
https://www.facebook.com/ChefAngelaB

https://www.facebook.com/BeyondtheBull